Event bandwidth is a peak problem, not an average
The question of how much internet an event needs has two answers: one for download and one for upload. Most people only ask about download, because that's the number advertised on plans. At events, trouble usually comes from upload, or from a connection that coped all morning and fell over when everyone reached for a device at the same time.
That second point matters more than any speed figure. A conference might average modest use across a day, then spike when a session ends and hundreds of devices check email, sync photos and join calls within minutes. A working site spikes at the start of the day and again after lunch. Size the connection for those moments. If it handles the peak, the rest of the day takes care of itself.
Event bandwidth figures per use
These are the planning starting points we use before a site visit. They're deliberately simple so you can check the arithmetic, and every plan is confirmed on site.
| What's running | Download | Upload | Planning note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Browsing, email, messaging (per active device) | About 0.5 Mbps | Small | Count devices, not people: working people carry 1.5–2 devices, public attendees about 1 |
| Video call (per person on a call) | About 1.5 Mbps | About 1.5 Mbps | Uses upload as fast as download, so calls add up quickly on the upload side |
| Live stream (per stream) | Minimal | 10–20 Mbps, steady | Plan headroom of roughly 1.5–2× the stream bitrate |
| Large file uploads (video, photo sets, backups) | Varies | Far more than anything above | Usually decides the plan on its own; work out the volume and the time window |
| EFTPOS terminals and ticket scanners | Small | Small | Need reliability and their own network more than speed |
Figures are per active device or per use at the busiest moment. They're planning assumptions, not measurements of your event.
How to work out internet speed for an event
Six steps, in this order. Doing upload before download prevents the most common mistake.
List everything that connects
Staff laptops and phones, attendee devices, registration tablets, EFTPOS terminals, ticket scanners, screens, cameras, streaming encoders and anything that uploads files. Mark the ones that must never drop out.
Pick the busiest moment
Session breaks, doors opening, the first hour of a working day, the moment a winner is announced. Count what is active then, not across the whole day.
Work out upload first
Add 10–20 Mbps for each live stream, about 1.5 Mbps per person on a video call, and the rate needed to move large files in the time you have. This figure often rules out plans that look fine on download.
Then work out download
Multiply active devices by about 0.5 Mbps and add about 1.5 Mbps per video call. For public events assume about one device per person; for working teams, 1.5–2.
Leave headroom
Don't plan to run the connection at its limit. Real-world speeds vary through the day, and a connection running flat out feels slow to everyone on it.
Split it into lanes
Give streaming, payments and staff their own networks with their own share of the connection, so a busy guest network can't starve them. Then choose the connection that fits.
Worked example: a 60-person working site
Sixty people move into a temporary office and warehouse space for a few months. Working people carry 1.5–2 devices each, so plan for 90–120 devices. Use the upper figure, because the busiest moment is the start of the day when every laptop and phone syncs at once: 120 devices × 0.5 Mbps = 60 Mbps of download for everyday work.
Now add calls. If ten people are on video calls at the same time, that's 10 × 1.5 Mbps = 15 Mbps each way. Download comes to roughly 60 + 15 = 75 Mbps at peak. Upload comes to 15 Mbps for calls, plus everyday uploads such as attachments and cloud sync. If the team also sends large files every day, that requirement sits on top and will usually set the upload you need.
So the plan needs download comfortably above 75 Mbps and upload comfortably above 15 Mbps before file transfers are counted. Upload is the easy one to underestimate on a site like this. Our 5,000 m² warehouse case study used a 2000/500 Mbps fibre service for 50+ people because standard plans with a small upload share would have been the bottleneck.
Worked example: a 200-person conference with a live stream
Two hundred delegates, most with a laptop and a phone. Plan on 1.5 devices each: 200 × 1.5 = 300 devices. The busiest moment is the morning break, when nearly everyone checks messages at once. If all 300 are active, 300 × 0.5 Mbps = 150 Mbps of download. Fewer are usually active at any instant, but planning for the break is what keeps the break usable.
Upload is where the stream lives. One live stream needs 10–20 Mbps of steady upload; plan the top of that range, 20 Mbps, so the encoder has headroom. Two remote speakers joining by video call add 2 × 1.5 Mbps = 3 Mbps each way. Upload needed: 20 + 3 = 23 Mbps, plus everyday attendee uploads, and it has to hold for the whole session, not just during a speed test.
The result: download comfortably above 150 Mbps, upload comfortably above 23 Mbps, with the stream and the speakers on a production network that guests can't touch. Our guide to upload speed for live streaming covers the stream side in more depth.
Internet speed for events of 30 to 500 people
The same method applied to five event sizes. Each row shows the arithmetic so you can swap in your own numbers.
| Event | Devices at the busiest moment | Download estimate | Upload estimate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 30-person workshop, working attendees, presenter on one video call | 30 × 2 = 60 | 60 × 0.5 + 1.5 = 31.5 Mbps | 1.5 Mbps for the call, plus everyday uploads |
| 60-person working site, ten people on calls at once | 60 × 2 = 120 | 120 × 0.5 + 10 × 1.5 = 75 Mbps | 10 × 1.5 = 15 Mbps, plus file transfers |
| 100-person public event, no stream | 100 × 1 = 100 | 100 × 0.5 = 50 Mbps | Small, unless staff upload photos or video |
| 200-person conference, one live stream, two remote speakers | 200 × 1.5 = 300 | 300 × 0.5 + 3 = 153 Mbps | 20 + 3 = 23 Mbps, steady |
| 500-person public event with stalls and EFTPOS | 500 × 1 = 500 | 500 × 0.5 = 250 Mbps ceiling | Small for guests; payments on their own network |
These are ceilings that assume every device is active at the busiest moment. Real use is often lower, which becomes your headroom. Access point numbers are a separate calculation.
Common mistakes when sizing event bandwidth
Most under-sized event connections trace back to one of these.
Counting people instead of devices
A team of 50 working people can bring 75–100 devices. Public events run closer to one per person, but the count still starts with devices, not tickets sold.
Planning for the average
A connection that copes at 11 am can fail at the morning break. Size for the moment everyone reaches for a device at once.
Ignoring upload
Streams, video calls, photo uploads and cloud sync all push data out. Upload ceilings are lower than download on most plans, so they run out first.
One network for everything
When guests, staff, payments and the stream share a single network, the busiest group sets everyone's experience. Separate networks protect what matters.
Trusting one speed test
A single test shows one moment. What matters is steady performance during the event, measured where the equipment actually sits.
Assuming mobile data will cover it
4G/5G networks can congest when a crowd gathers, and mobile upload is limited and depends on the site. Treat mobile as a starting point or backup, not a given.
When to get help with event bandwidth
If your numbers are small, a single connection and a sensible network split may be all you need. Get help when a stream or payments must not drop, when the upload figure comes out larger than anything the venue can confirm, or when you need a new connection in a hurry. Activation for a new service depends on the address and existing equipment, from a couple of business days to several weeks.
Our event bandwidth calculator runs this arithmetic for you, and temporary internet explains how we choose between a venue line, a new service and 4G/5G. Bandwidth is half the picture; the other half is how many access points you need to carry it to every device.
Questions people ask
How much internet speed do I need for 100 people at an event?
For a public event of 100 people with about one device each, plan roughly 100 × 0.5 Mbps = 50 Mbps of download at the busiest moment. If those 100 are working delegates with laptops and phones, plan 150–200 devices, or 75–100 Mbps. Then add upload separately: 10–20 Mbps per live stream and about 1.5 Mbps per video call.
Is 100 Mbps enough for an event?
100 Mbps of download covers about 200 active devices browsing at roughly 0.5 Mbps each, if nothing else is running. Whether it's enough depends on the upload figure and the busiest moment. One live stream needs 10–20 Mbps of steady upload on its own, and many plans offer only a fraction of their download as upload, so check both numbers.
Does event internet need more download or upload?
Attendee browsing mostly uses download, but streams, video calls, photo uploads and file transfers use upload, and upload is usually the smaller number on a plan. For events with streaming, media or production work, plan upload first. For a simple public event without a stream, download and the number of access points matter more.
How do I calculate bandwidth for a hybrid event?
Calculate the in-room audience as normal: active devices × about 0.5 Mbps of download. Then add the remote side on upload: 10–20 Mbps of steady upload per live stream and about 1.5 Mbps each way per remote speaker on a video call. Keep the stream and speakers on their own network and test the whole setup at the busiest time.
Can the venue's internet handle my event?
Sometimes. Ask the venue for its download and upload figures, whether the connection is shared with the rest of the building, and how many devices it supports at once. Compare those with your busiest-moment estimate. If the venue can't give numbers, or its upload is below what a stream needs, plan to supplement it where the venue allows outside equipment.
What happens if the event internet is too slow?
Everything on the same network slows together: pages stall, video calls freeze, streams buffer or drop, and EFTPOS terminals can time out. Separating networks limits the damage, because guests filling their share can't take the stream's or the payments' share. Sizing for the busiest moment and keeping a backup connection are the two main protections.
Sources
Planning figures on this page are starting points. Every network is confirmed against the actual site.
